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December 10, 2011

Damask Stenciled Curtain [Tutorial]

Here's the promised tutorial for my stenciled curtains!
I love this project! It was quite a bit of work because I stenciled 6 curtain panels!
Sounds like a lot of work, right?
Let me tell you, it was 100 percent worth it and I'd do it again in a heart beat!

Why? I needed a large quantity, 6 panels to create the looks I was after. This way I got exactly what I wanted: a beautiful damask curtain on a linen-like fabric with the exact shade of gray I wanted. In my eyes, you cannot beat it!
First, here's a few pics of my inspiration curtains.

This is from Shanty 2 Chic and the fabric is Waverly Bedazzled in Silver. Love it, but it costs $30 a yard (sometimes it's on sale for $20). Um, thanks, but no thanks.

You can kinda see these curtain panels from The Lettered Cottage in this pic. Similar feel, right? Cream and "greige" on a textured cotton or linen, beautiful and vintage-y.

Last, but not least-Stephanie's curtains- from Frugal Home Ideas.{PS she's sharing a no sew curtain tutorial on that post}

I choose a damask pattern because I wanted something that looked a little aged, and I thought Anna Damask Allover Stencil from Cutting Edge Stencils would do that perfectly.
When I add something new, I am always mentally trying to balance something new {looking} with something old {looking}. I want a room that looks both modern and vintage. For me, damask equals an aged element. I also wanted a soft, scrolling pattern to balance all the hard elements in my space- the metallics, the modern lines, and the typography everywhere.Materials
6 Curtain Panels from Ikea
Gray Craft Paint - 2 bottles per curtain
Fabric Paint Additive- 2 bottles
Paint Roller and Stencil Pouncers Stencil
Painter's Tape
Stencil Adhesive

I've done some stenciling before {like the Greek Key Fabric stencil I made}, but I watched the tutorial from Cutting Edge Stencils, just to be certain I didn't have any mishaps. Since I was doing a product review, I wanted to make certain I was reviewing the actual product and not my user error!

[1] Lay out your fabric on a flat surface with paper or cardboard underneath, something to catch the paint that may soak through the fabric. I created a faux flat surface for my stenciling by using a zillion pieces of free cardboard from Ikea. I knew I was going to have 6-8 panels to paint, so I figured that good surface preparation was worth it. {Yeah, I use Ikea's free supplies- All. The. Time.}

[2] Tape down all the side, making sure the fabric is laying flat and not pulled or stretched in any way.
The better you line up your fabric and secure it, the better your results will be. Prep work is uber important.

[3] {If you haven't stenciled a lot before now, watch this video.}
Prepare your paints following the mixing directions. I used Americana in Slate Gray and Martha Stewart's Fabric Additive for paint. See that little gray dot? That was my only test swatch on the fabric. In hindsight, I'd say I'm lucky I like the end result as much as I do! Ack!

[4] Spray the back of your stencil with stencil adhesive, this is especially important if you have a very detailed stencil with a lot of open cutouts. The more you move the roller to paint all that pattern, the easier it is for the stencil to shift. With the stencil spray adhesive I didn't have a single problem with the stencil shifting.
I followed their directions {from the video} about how to load the roller for stenciling and how to roll off any extra paint {see the paper towel with paint on it?} And guess what?! I did not have any paint bleeding under the stencil for my whole project!!

[5] Use a roller to do all-over stenciling like a damask, space out your stencil- you know, plan your attack. I started the top of each panel with the same part of the stencil for each of the six panels, so when you look across the room the pattern would line up.
I used the roller from Cutting Edge Stencils and it worked very well! It's different from other rollers in that it has a rounded end and is made of the perfect foam density for stenciling.

[6] Go back to fill in the top, bottom, and sides. Make sure to line up the stencil with the cutout indicator marks.

You can see how the cutouts line up perfectly with the already stenciled curtain. This was at the bottom of the curtain and everything still lined up perfectly. I'm telling you- taping everything down is super important!

[7] Let your curtains dry overnight, at least, then iron them to set in the paint. Since mine were the Lenda curtains from Ikea they also needed to be either hemmed or ironed with the fabric tape to create a hem. Not bad for 10 bucks a panel.

Would you believe I did not have a single mishap using this stencil, not one "oops", or "uh-oh"?! You know I need at least two tries to get a project right almost every single time I try one- well not this time!! Slow and steady, friends- slow and steady!

There was one setback- none due to the stencil or the stencil painting process.

I didn't know how much paint I would be using AND even if I did, I still bought out every bottle in each store that sold them locally and therefore, ended up running out {three times!}

So, now YOU know, for a stencil as complex as a damask- you will need 2 bottle of craft paint per panel, ok? OK.

My only other negative comment, cleaning the stencil is so not my favorite. There, I said it. It just wasn't fun. But I've heard they have a "stencil cleaner" - so now I would highly recommend getting it, if you're doing an extensive stenciling job.

Now, for things that rocked...

First, the overlapping stencil was nearly impossible to mess up. The indicator cutouts telling you where to line up the stencil worked great. Not a single problem and I had to move the stencil between 20-30 times per panel! I know what you're thinking... sounds like a lot of work, but it totally worth it and with the roller it went pretty quickly.

Second, look at how crisp the lines are! Isn't that awesome! You cannot tell that the curtains are painted. There was NO BLEEDING under the stencil!! NONE!!

Wanna see some befores and afters? I think the dining room is a more dramatic change, since there were no curtains before. I LOVE the change!! It feels so much softer and a lot less like a condo.

BEFORE:

AFTER:

This angle probably bothered me a TON more than it could any of you, since you're not living in the space. The prior curtains were silk- nothing to complain about right? But they were way to plain with white builder paint and I was dying for a change. This was worth the wait, I love them!
BEFORE:

AFTER:

It took me 1-2 hours to complete each panel. I think I am probably a slow "stenciler" {stenciler=one who stencils, probably not a word?}, but I had a feeling I would be. I just get so precise when I'm doing a project. Great results are worth the time spent, as 6 custom curtains would have cost some serious coin.

Look how pretty the curtains are with the light coming through!! I am a little obsessed with making things so I can get exactly what I want. I don't mind putting in the time, better that than money and then I get the exact look I'm after. I love my end result and already have another stencil idea swirling around in my brain!

Everyone that has come over since the panels have slowly made it up cannot believe they are painted! I almost can't either- except for you know, all the hours I crawled around the floor on cardboard with roller in hand!

Would you believe I also made the curtain rods, too?

It was super cheap and easy, only 20 bucks for both! You can catch that tutorial here.

Absolute beauty !!!!Love how the pattern just falls soo perfectly with the folds.. amazing transformation. yeah all that rolling on the floor was worth it !!! You should do a happy dance everytime you walk past those curtain beauties. I dont think I'll have the patience to do this though..merry christmas!!!!!babita @ CSU.

Lovely and what a patience ful project...I came here via BNOTP... its so lovely and transform your room in a beautiful way just lovely ...Thanks for sharing your hardwork dear...Happy if you come to see me athttp://craftaworld.blogspot.com/with love fromFarah

That looks fabulous!I know from experience how much work stencilling is, and am not sure if I would have the stamina and energy to tackle a huge project like this one, but it is so worth it.Your curtains look a million dollars!

This is completely amazing! I love the pattern, color and how the room all came together! Perfect! I would love for you to come link this up at our link party...junkintheirtrunk.blogspot.com/2011/12/link-it-up-wednesday-7.html

Oh these are fabulous! I have always wanted to do this and you have given me some real encouragement through this demo. Thank you so much. I love Cutting Edge Stencils...they have such a great selection. Kristine

Your curtains came out perfect. I love the stencil pattern. I am going to have to try this one. I have been looking for the perfect curtains and have yet to find them. I have a gorgeous allover stencil from Royal Design already and I pass Ikea every evening. Thanks for the inspiration and thanks for sharing at DIYbyDesign's Fall into Fall party.

This is amazing! I love how it all turned out! I would love to feature this project on my blog. Let me know if you are interested and I will get all the details to you! Thanks for linking up to our party!

Wow!Excellent job! The curtains turned out beautifully. I've been searching and searching for curtains or fabric for my living room we are currently making over. I won a Large Stencil from Royal Design a few months ago and I think I will be using it FINALLY. It's really huge and I won't have to move it around but 4 or 5 times on the panel I choose. So excited to try this. Thanks for sharing it~Judy~

Wow!Excellent job! The curtains turned out beautifully. I've been searching and searching for curtains or fabric for my living room we are currently making over. I won a Large Stencil from Royal Design a few months ago and I think I will be using it FINALLY. It's really huge and I won't have to move it around but 4 or 5 times on the panel I choose. So excited to try this. Thanks for sharing it~Judy~

I am so glad I found you a while back. You are my kind of gal, fearless and wanting to have the look with little money. These drapes turned out totally awesome and That is the exact stencil I was thinking of buying for a guest bedroom wall.

Hi Becca! Congrats on being chosen as a feature at Under the Table and Dreaming link party. I stenciled some curtains (just the inside edge and bottom) with my last house and the folks that bought it wanted to curtains to stay...I was proud. Yours are WAY more complicated...you did a fabulouis job.

Your curtains looks really great. I am definateky putting that on my to do list! Thanks for linking up to my Creative inspirations party - please come back this week as I would love to have you there!Stacey of Embracing Change

That fabric medium is very important to keep the fabric soft. I have done some of this in the past.

I have a stencil from Cutting Edge (which looks like yours) that we are going to use on the MBR walls. I would love to do fabric to match (I need EIGHT panels in there,) but I don't think I could crawl around on the floor that long anymore!

I thought I would make it an even 75 comments even though your original post was in December! What a fabulous job. You should be featured in the stencil company's brochure or website! Are you? Michele (not David!)

I can not tell you how excited I am about this project!!! I have the same curtains from IKEA....I was going to paint stripes on them but decided not to because I wanted something more like what you have done. So stinkin' excited!! This is def going on my todo list. Love your blog! Found you from www.akadesign.ca

I realize this post is very old but I hope you can still answer a question. I clicked on your link for the Anna damask stencil and it says it comes in two parts. Was yours a two-part stencil, a big part and then a small fill-in part?